What's New?

We are now twenty-three days into this brand new year, so look around at your home and your life to see what’s new or different other than the date on your calendar. For most of us, typically nothing is changed in our behavior or the arrangement of our homes, the way we pray or relate to others. While we have made welcoming the arrival of a fresh year on New Year’s Eve into a lavish fiesta of fireworks, clouds of confetti, balloons and popping champagne corks, when the sun rises on January 1st is anything really different in our lives? Perhaps instead of creating newness for yourself, you are waiting for the calendar gods to surprise you with something novel in this year numbered 2013. If this is true for you, Matt Zoller Seitz may have a valuable insight into reasons why: “Americans live inside their own private echo chambers, endlessly revisiting things they already know they like and avoiding exposure to anything new and different.” If Seitz is correct—and you really do desire this baby year 2013 to be different—how do you escape from your private personal echo chamber? Here are few ideas on how to break out and create something novel: ~ Don’t wait for the gods to surprise you with a bolt from out of the blue. ~ Experiment with new cooking receipts—at the risk of creating a real flop. ~ Read new books and authors—even if you find them not to your taste. ~ Drive down different streets than usual—you may get lost, but not for long. ~ Pray or worship in another religion than you own—you won’t lose your soul. ~ Rearrange your living or work space—in time your habits will adjust. ~ Talk to a stranger about his/her dreams and fears—inhabit another’s world. ~ Create a new profanity or curse word—the old ones are frayed and worn out. ~ Love or befriend someone new—even if they don’t sweep you off your feet. If these do not stimulate you to experiment with anything new, don’t fret, for you have another chance on Sunday, February 10th, the Chinese New Year. This is the Chinese year of the Black Snake, a zodiac sign that implies flexibility and changeability. Snakes annually shed their old skins and grow new ones. Be inspired then in this auspicious Year of the Black Snake to shed your old habits and tired ways—and become refreshingly new.